Oakland Raiders: 7-Round 2019 mock draft lands stud prospects

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HOUSTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 01: Ed Oliver #10 of the Houston Cougars celebrates after the tackle of Austin Walter #2 of the Rice Owls in the first half at Rice Stadium on September 1, 2018 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

Round 1, Pick 4: Ed Oliver, DT, Houston

Sitting at the fourth-overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, the Oakland Raiders ultimately find themselves in an unenviable position with how the draft order currently stands. The biggest need for the Raiders after trading Khalil Mack is an edge rusher to change their defense. There are no doubt players that could do that for them in this class, but the two best — Nick Bosa and Josh Allen — are unlikely to make it out of the first three picks barring any kind of trade.

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While a trade up in a thin quarterback class is certainly possible, the way the order stands now would put the Raiders in a position where they would be reaching for an edge rusher at No. 4. That would leave them in a position where the best player on the board, for my money, would be Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver.

The interesting thing with taking Oliver is that the Raiders may have their best defensive depth at the position after Maurice Hurst fell to them on Day 3 last year and proved to be effective and while they have a solid project piece in P.J. Hall. As has been said before, though, good players on the roster should not prohibit a team from taking a potentially great player, and Oliver has the chance to be that.

While his size at defensive tackle can be brought into question and will be a talking point come the Combine, Oliver is an athletic freak up front with lightning quickness off the ball and the ability to consistently generate pressure up the middle. With the way that teams have proven successful with rushing up the middle, a player of Oliver’s ilk should be a coveted commodity and someone that Oakland can’t pass up at No. 4.

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